Why is it that whenever I clean my ear, I get a tingly feeling in my throat?

Question

I use q-tips to clean my ears about once a week and for some reason when i try to clean my left ear i get a tingly feeling in my throat then i cough. It's only my left, not my right. Why is this, and how can I stop it?

Answer 1

I think it just has to do with the ear and throught being connected.

It happens to me and my sister too.

Answer 2

Well as everyone said they are all connected. It sounds like sensitivity. I would be very very careful when cleaning my ears from now on and go with the ear wax drops to clean them out rather than sticking anything in them.

Answer 3

Its because your ear and your throat are connected via a tube, maybe you're cleanning too far back into your ear, or perhaps your left side is just a little sensitive.

Answer 4

You know, I've always wondered the same. I thought I was nuts!

Answer 5

You can't.   Your Eustachian tubes connects your inner ear to your throat.  That's how pressure is equalized in your sinuses.  Those nerves are involved with each other.  So sensations in your ears, sinuses and throat can interact.

Don't use Q-tips to clean your ears.  They are too blunt and push the ear wax to the back of the ear, against the Tinpanic Membrane (eardrum).  Next time you see your doc, he has some soft plastic ear wax removers mothers use on their babies.  He may be willing to give you a couple.  Don't try anything else, or you can puncture your eardrum and that is baaaaaaad news.

There are also some over the counter ear wax remover products that use liquids to liquify the was and let it drain.